It’s easy to follow the negativity at work because misery loves company. If you’re tired of the negative and want to be happy at work, then here are a few ideas that can help you change up your routine, shift your focus, and maybe even help you look forward to going to work in the morning!

#1. Make an effort to smile more. It can’t be one of those fake smiles that shows a lot of teeth, but not a lot of emotion. In making an effort to smile more, you’ll need to look for the good that is around you so that you can see and experience the joy that comes with an authentic smile. That means you’ll also need to focus on rejecting the bad and finding ways to be content in all things.

#2. Push the reset button on your brain now and then. We’ve all had those moments where one thing after another after another after yet another thing all come crashing down in bad ways. The stress builds up in your chest, makes your neck ache, and then the worries begin. Instead of succumbing to the pressure, take a moment and just push the reset button on your brain. It takes just a minute and can be a favorite poem, prayer, or chant. There may be no better way to increase your energy levels immediately!

#3. Don’t talk down to yourself. “Nice job, you idiot!” “What were you thinking, you moron?” “What on Earth were you thinking?” Self talk works in good and bad ways depending on what it is that we say to ourselves throughout the day. Many of us use the negative version when we make a mistake, but rarely use the positive version when we do a good job. If you give yourself the credit you deserve, you’ll actually give yourself a measure of mental durability that can prevent you from being overwhelmed in the future.

#4. Take time to celebrate. Make one of your goals in life to learn something meaningful every day. Will learning the Peter Capaldi has always been a lifelong Doctor Who fan change your life? Not necessarily, even if you are a big fan of the show! Will discovering a new way to flag your emails so that you can be more efficient with your time change your life? Possibly.

#5. Be human. It’s fine to be strange. It’s actually part of the human experience! You could choose to be irritated, frustrated, or righteously angry… or you can choose to be bemused by the strange things that people do and realize that you probably look pretty strange to others too. The best part about being human is that our limitations are the strengths that others have and by finding creative ways to work together, we can all be stronger and happier for it.

#6. Use the manners that Mom taught. There are a lot of people who do a lot of thankless jobs every day. It’s not fun to clean vomit from a toilet seat or craw through a dusty HVAC system to restore a building’s air conditioning. How about those customer service agents who get belittled by angry customers every single day? Get into the habit of saying “Thank you,” whenever you see a job well done and not only can you change their day for it, you can make your own day a lot happier as well.

Does it feel like your job just drains the life out of you every day? Do you dread getting up in the morning because you absolutely hate going to work? For many, their career takes up about one-third of their life. The negative feelings associated with despising a job and its responsibilities can drain more energy from your soul every day than the work that is being done!

The good news is that you can start getting the passion back for your job starting right now. It all begins with the emphasis that you’re focusing upon. Are you looking at the short-term issues more than the long-term results? What joy can your job give to others? Focus on these positive feelings and you will start to feel a level of passion begin to return.

#1. Take the company mission to heart. Every company has a mission that it wants to achieve, even if it is a fast food restaurant. This mission is important because it is a reflection of the passion that the company wishes to show the public at large. Incorporate this mission and find a way to make it important to your life and needs as well. Providing joy to others is a great way to bring joy into one’s life!

#2. Be productive every day. One of the fastest ways to lose the passion for a job is boredom. When people aren’t challenged to grow and succeed, boredom can set in really fast! Don’t rely on your superiors or co-workers to challenge you. Challenge yourself and make sure you accomplish things every day to achieve at least one of your goals. Success will always give passion a boost!

#3. Set benchmarks for yourself. How can you track your progress if you don’t have any benchmarks or metrics set for yourself? When you set your goals, create plans that will help you see the progress you’re making toward these goals. In doing so, you’ll also create a foundation of passion because you’ll be able to see where you’ve been, where you currently are, and where you plan to be.

#4. Journal everything. Take a notebook with you to work and chart things that bring you joy when you’re at work. It could be the regular jokes of a co-worker, a compliment from a supervisor, or even the amazing hash browns and pepper gravy the cafeteria serves. It’s easy to lose sight of the good things when negative feelings surround us. Chart the good stuff and then look back on it when you feel less than great about waking up on a Monday morning.

#5. Get creative. The biggest negative that many people feel about work is a lack of being creative. Sometimes this lack of creativity feels forced upon people, but that doesn’t have to be accepted. Always be creative, even if someone demands that you are not. Worst case scenario? Your creativity lands you in a better job somewhere else.

#6. Rejoice in the good. It is ultimately about perspective. If we rejoice in the good and simply discard or forgive the bad, then we won’t be worried, anxious, or fearful of what the future can bring. Those are the greatest stresses of all! Simply be content, in this very moment, and you will find your passion back.

An interior designer would be ashamed to see the current condition of my desk. There are three piles of paperwork, a stack of promotional posters, four energy drink cans, a bag of potato chips, and one coffee mug all surrounding my computer. To me, this is normal. This is also a great way to bring a hidden danger into the work day that can rob anyone like me of their productivity.

Making Piles Means You’re Not Setting Limits

I don’t usually think of myself as a workaholic, but the fact that I’m working most weekend days for at least a few hours betrays my own perspective. I make piles of work that need to be done because it makes me feel organized, but that’s not the issue. The real problem is that piles of work mean that there isn’t as much discipline in setting limits as there needs to be.

It also means that there are days where I’m treating my desk as a storage space. Clutter has a method of multiplying as soon as you allow it to come into your life, which means even more dangers to productivity. What would happen if there was still some coffee in that mug that’s sitting right in front of my computer screen this instant and it spilled? There goes my productivity!

Here’s the harsh reality and it’s one that I’m still learning: the best working surface is clean, flat, and organized. It’s fine to have some comfort items, but the visual clutter just needs to disappear.

Let’s Make the Clutter Disappear To the Floor!

Has your desk ever become so cluttered that you started using the floor as extra storage space? I’ve been there so many times and it isn’t always work items that hit the floor, is it? The gym bag, the backpack, the laptop bag all tend to have a specific spot on the floor that is assigned to them! It seems like a good idea at first, but the floor is just an extension of the working space. If you’re creating space on your desk by taking up your floor space, then there’s still an issue going on.

Clutter isn’t always the extra energy drink cans or the pile of coffee mugs from the last week on your desk. Your digital clutter, or your emails and other messages, can take up even more of your time. How long did it take you to find that one specific email you needed, even with the search boxes on your preferred email program? It took me 15 minutes to find an email the other day!

It’s more than just being organized. It’s also about giving a proper first impression! You will be judged within the first 30 seconds of someone seeing your office. If it’s clean, tidy, and organized, people will think of you as a true leader. A visionary, perhaps, or someone who knows what they want out of life. Have the clutter and people will see you as reckless, without vision, and ultimately not the right person to meet their needs.

You don’t have to clean your desk every day. You do have to schedule time in your day to clean up your working area, however, because otherwise the clutter will expand. When this happens, you may just find your productivity deflating in return.

Credibility is an important part of how others view you. In the workplace, having credibility can affect you in a number of ways, including determining whether or not you’re give larger projects that could lead to promotion. Unfortunately, it seems like many people have incorrect or inaccurate views of what credibility actually is, and are therefore unaware of how to improve their own credibility. According to Webster’s dictionary, credibility is “the quality or power of inspiring belief.” It’s your ability to inspire others to believe in you, and your abilities. So how do you increase your credibility?

1. Be Honest

Honesty and integrity are key elements to building your credibility. If you are unsure of your ability to complete a project, be honest about needing help. When someone asks you a question at work, answer them honestly and fairly. Finally, be committed to acting in an ethical way in everything you do. If you want to build credibility with your coworkers and bosses, it’s important that you build your reputation as an honest, ethical person.

2. Be Competent

If you truly want to appear credible at work, know your job inside and out. People trust others who appear to be experts in their field. This means that you need to be committed to learning your job well, and to consistently add to your knowledge. It’s not enough to simply read books; hands-on experience is important for building expertise as well. Whenever new workshops come up that could help build your knowledge base in your field, take advantage of the opportunity. Ask to take part in projects where you can show off your expertise.

3. Be Wise

When it comes to credibility, few things can build it faster than making good decisions. If you want to be viewed as being credible, you need to be able to ask intelligent questions that allow you to analyze a complex situation in order to make a good decision. Being able to see the big picture instead of becoming focused on the smaller details can go a long way toward building your credibility at work. Try to avoid quick judgments – gather all of the information you can about a situation before coming to any conclusions.

4. Be Empathetic (not Arrogant)

For many people, becoming an expert in their field has a tendency to make them arrogant. If you want to be viewed as credible, it’s important to avoid this. In order to build credibility with others, you have to be empathetic to their personal situation. Find out what is important to your coworkers, and take an interest in the things that are important to them, and in their personal situation. Take the time to understand where another person is coming from before you reject their point of view or suggestion. You also need to demonstrate a lack of arrogance by being willing to admit and learn from your mistakes.

5. Be Happy

Let’s face it, no one can be happy all the time. What’s important for your credibility is that you are the type of person who can lift someone else up when they’re having a bad day. Having a consistent attitude of positivity and optimism can help to make you more likeable, which can make you seem more credible to your coworkers. This means being friendly, and trying to find the humor even in the worst situations. Try to view problems as challenges to be overcome, and describe them that way when talking to others. Make an effort to express gratitude toward others both privately and publicly. Whenever possible, do this in writing.